Sheffield United FC Sign Up To Workplace Pledge
The club has become the first in the north of England to sign up to our dedicated initiative to ensure workplaces are psychologically safe and to spread suicide awareness and education throughout their fans.
Championship football club Sheffield United (SUFC) has signed up to The Baton of Hope’s Workplace Pledge: our key initiative aimed at employers to pledge and commit to ensuring their workplaces are psychologically safe for their employees to work in.
SUFC is the second professional football team to pledge their support, with the first being Oxford United. They will join the hundreds of national employers including the Royal Mail and British Steel who have already signed up to our Workplace Pledge, which The Baton of Hope team has spent over two years developing.
It includes resources and training to deliver the best in practice around mental health, suicide awareness and prevention. Under pinned by established clinical models with input from clinicians, educators and subject matter experts with lived experience, the Workplace Pledge has been validated by healthcare professionals, and any UK employer can sign up to the initiative. It complies with the new British Standard 30480 and is accredited by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH).
Japhet Tanganga, Captain for SUFC’s Men’s Team, said: “Suicide is a massive issue that goes largely overlooked and even ignored and we know that three-quarters of the people who take their lives are men. We want to encourage both men and women to fully recognise the magnitude of this national catastrophe and urge people not to suffer alone.”
Ella Kinzett, SUFC’s Women’s Team Captain, added: “We are all in this together and owe it to each other to show compassion. It’s estimated that when someone takes their life 135 are affected in the aftermath. If we unite we can bring about change. We know now that the vast majority of suicides are preventable and talking about it is the first step when it comes to standing up to suicide.”
SUFC kicked off a campaign to support their commitment to signing the Workplace Pledge ahead of their men’s team home fixture at Bramall Lane against Birmingham City on 20th December, and the women’s team match with Southampton on the following day (21st December). During both matches, digital messages were displayed on LED screens around the stadium encouraging fans to be more aware of the power of compassion and how to take part in suicide awareness sessions. Fans could sign up to free suicide awareness and prevention training via QR codes displayed throughout the matches
Ben Wilson, Clinical Director at The Baton of Hope, explained: “Football is a unique glue that joins so many of society together. This is a welcome partnership and fantastic opportunity to reach thousands as; united, we stand up to suicide.”
Mike McCarthy, Co-Founder and Chair for The Baton of Hope, added: “The pressures within football both on the pitch and behind the scenes can be massive. It makes the support required for mental health even more important. We are proud of the suicide prevention programme we provide which is accredited by one of the most prestigious health organisations in the country.”
If you are an employer and are interested in finding out more about the Workplace Pledge and signing up, please visit our dedicated page to find out more.
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